BACKGROUND Before German reunification, old-age mortality was considerably higher in East Germany than West Germany but converged quickly afterward. Previous studies attributed this rapid catch-up to improved living conditions. We add to this discussion by quantifying for the first time the impact of mortality selection. METHODS We use a gamma-Gompertz mortality model to estimate the contribu...

Keywords: continental climate of the temperate belt, east-coast climate of the temperate belt, subtropical continental climate, subtropical east-coast climate, subtropical west-coast climate, west-coast climate of the temperate belt. Contents 1. Introduction 2. Subtropical belt 2.1. Subtropical continental climate 2.2. Subtropical oceanic climate 2.3. Subtropical west-coast climate 2.4. Subtrop...

BACKGROUND Sub-Saharan Africa has one of the highest levels of child malnutrition globally. Therefore, a critical look at the distribution of malnutrition within its sub-regions is required to identify the worst affected areas. This study provides a meta-analysis of the prevalence of malnutrition indicators (stunting, wasting and underweight) within four sub-regions of sub-Saharan Africa. MET...